SHILLONG, Nov 13 ? The two-day Wangala or the hundred-drum festival, the most important festival of the indigenous Garo community, came to a close on Saturday amidst traditional fanfare. Wangala is a harvest festival held in honour of Saljong, the sun-god of fertility. It marks the end of a period of toil in the fields, bringing a good yield of crops.
The festival was celebrated in Asanang, 18 km off West Garo hills district town of Tura, where the first hundred-drum festival was organised on December 6-7, 1976. State Public Works Minister Mukul Sangma and Tourism Minister Deborah C Marak attended the festivities, joined by thousands of local people. A group of 30 dancers, comprising men and women, with ten drums form a contingent and 300 dancers make up the hundred-drum Wangala festival executing the dance with subtle variations. The hills and valleys resound with the beat of drums.
In order to protect, preserve and promote cultural identity, a group of Garo intellectuals came together and decided to organise the festival on modern lines. The festival has grown over the years under the patronage of the state government, nurtured by a registered cultural body.